Veridian Corp. was awarded a $1.3 million time and materials contract by the U.S. Department of the Interior's Bureau of Reclamation to conduct security risk assessments for 10 of the nation's largest dams and water treatment facilities. The Bureau of Reclamation owns and operates most of the large dams and reservoirs in 17 western states.

Veridian's Security Analysis and Risk Management department based in Fairfax, VA will conduct the work. "The Veridian team is pleased to be given some of the largest dams and hydropower generation facilities in the U.S. to assess," says Ed Jopeck, Veridian's director of security analysis and risk management. "The project began in response to the September 11 events and subsequent warnings that our nation's critical water infrastructure was vulnerable to increasing threats from terrorists. Veridian was brought into this project due to our recognized expertise in risk management and antiterrorism."

This new contract adds to other critical infrastructure risk assessments and risk management projects led by Veridian for other water infrastructures across the country, such as the risk assessment of the water supply system for a large U.S. city. The company also plays an active role in setting security standards for national water systems' infrastructures through work with the Environmental Water Resources Institute of the American Society of Civil Engineers.

Veridian has a long history of providing risk assessment and management programs for federal and state governments. The robust analytical risk management process that Veridian employs includes an in-depth assessment of asset values, threats and vulnerabilities, as well as identifying optimal countermeasures. Veridian's Continuous Risk Management (CRM) methodology is an advanced security analysis tool that is currently used by many organizations in the federal government that require sophisticated security programs to protect against terrorism and other threats. CRM was designed by Veridian personnel for U.S. Government and industrial security professionals responsible for analyzing and managing the protection of personnel, operations, computer systems, information, facilities, and equipment.

In addition to performing security risk assessments, Veridian is a recognized leader within the federal market space in network security and enterprise protection. Veridian's breadth and depth of technology and skills makes it one of the few companies that cover the continuum of network and infrastructure security services.